The present invention comprises a new Salvia, botanically known as Salvia×hybrid, and hereinafter referred to by the variety name ‘Mes Azur’.
‘Mes Azur’ is a product of a planned breeding program. The new cultivar ‘Mes Azur’ has medium violet flower color, upright, well branched, dense and bushy habit, medium green foliage and large sized flowers that are early flowering.
‘Mes Azur’ originated from an hybridization in a controlled breeding program in Gilroy, Calif. USA. The female parent was an unpatented, proprietary hybrid seedling (Salvia greggii×S. microphylla) identified as ‘F15-1’ with lavender-rose color. ‘F15-1’ has a more open habit and smaller foliage than ‘Mes Azur’.
The male parent of ‘Mes Azur’ was an unpatented, proprietary hybrid seeding (Salvia greggii×Salvia hybrida) identified as ‘47-1’ with rose color. ‘47-1’ has a much taller and leggy plant habit and smaller foliage than ‘Mes Azur’.
‘Mes Azur’ was selected as one flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in September 2004 in a controlled environment in Gilroy, Calif. USA. The pollination took place in October 2003 and the seed sowing in April 2004.
The first act of asexual reproduction of ‘Mes Azur’ was accomplished when vegetative cuttings were taken from the initial selection in the September 2004 in a controlled environment in Gilroy, Calif. USA.
Horticultural examination of plants grown from cuttings of the plant initiated in September 2004 in Gilroy, Calif. USA, and continuing thereafter, has demonstrated that the combination of characteristics as herein disclosed for ‘Mes Azur’ are firmly fixed and are retained through successive generations of asexual reproduction.
‘Mes Azur’ has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary significantly with variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity and day length.
A Plant Breeder's Right for this cultivar was applied for in Canada on Dec. 24, 2007. ‘Mes Azur’ has not been made publicly available more than one year prior to the filing of this application.